HC stays constitution of 55 Gram Panchayats in Noida

The Allahabad High Court today stayed the constitution of 55 Gram Panchayats in Gautam Budh Nagar district, where the cities of Noida and Greater Noida are situated, a day after polls were held there for three-tier village bodies.
A Division Bench comprising Justice Arun Tandon and Justice Yashwant Varma asked the state government to file its affidavit on the petition of Suresh Chandra Sharma, a resident of the district who has challenged the validity of the polls.
The petitioner contended that 80 villages falling under these Gram Panchayats have been acquired by the state government under the Land Acquisition Act for industrial development and hence these 55 village bodies cease to exist.

A preliminary objection was raised by the Additional Advocate General Kamal Singh Yadav who argued the state government had "only acquired the land and not the population" and hence the petitioner's contention that these Gram Pradhans cease to exist was not valid.
The court granted four weeks time to the state government for filing counter-affidavit and fixed July 05 for the next hearing.
Polls were held in the district yesterday for Gram Panchayats, Kshetra Panchayats, Zila Panchayat and the posts of Gram Pradhans.